Parliament's joint session postponed till Monday

Islamabad (Staff Report): The joint session of parliament has been postponed till Monday on the request of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) following the death of former first lady, Kulsoom Nawaz.

President Arif Alvi was scheduled to deliver his maiden address to the Senate and National Assembly members today at 4 PM for which a press release was also issued a day earlier.

The PML-N had approached senior government functionaries and National Assembly Speaker Asad Qasier with the request to postpone the joint session till Monday as the party leaders and MPs will not be available due to their engagements in Raiwind, Lahore, in connection with the funeral ceremony of the former first lady.

The president’s address to the joint session marks the beginning of the new parliamentary year. Following rescheduling of the joint session, the starting NA sessions in the new parliamentary year has also been rescheduled to Tuesday in which the government would present a mini-budget for the ongoing financial year.

Begum Kulsoom Nawaz passed away in London on Tuesday after a months-long battle with cancer. She had been placed on life support earlier as her health began deteriorating.

Begum Kulsoom travelled to the British capital city in August last year, where she was diagnosed with Lymphoma, prompting Sharif family members to get her admitted to the upscale health facility.

The former first lady, who contested elections from NA-120 Lahore last year, was shifted to the intensive care unit at a UK hospital from the emergency unit after her condition deteriorated ahead of Eid ul Fitr.

She is survived by her husband and four children, Hassan, Hussain, Maryam and Asma.

Begum Kulsoom’s dead body will be brought back to Pakistan tonight and her funeral prayers (Namaz e Janaza) will be offered at Sharif Medical City on Friday. She will be laid to rest at Jati Umra in Lahore.